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This is probably geared more towards browsers, but any 'helper' app could work the same here.

When I'm working with Activities, which is happening more and more lately, I have Kontact set as viewable on all activities. I may have a browser instance on a different activity when I click on a link in an email and the link is opened in a tab in the browser on the other activity. The only indication of it is in the taskbar, where an icon for that application is displayed (this may be a bug, as I have the taskbar set to only show tasks from the current activity, but it's not a bad thing - it lets me know my click wasn't ignored. If it is a bug, it should be reclassified as a feature). Clicking on that task switches to the activity with the browser.

There are actually two things that can happen at this stage. Perhaps give the user the choice as to how they want it to behave.

1) When clicking on the task icon, the helper app on the other activity is move to this activity, or possibly set to viewable on this and the original activity, or, my personal preference, 2) have a new instance of the helper app open in the current activity, instead of using the current instance on the other activity.

Of course, you run into the problem where you may want this behavior between activities. Perhaps make it application definable, similar to the way windows can be set to be on one, all, or select activities.

I have the taskbar and it shows the windows the same as it does for you so it might not be a bug. But I found this solution might need a better way to show that the window is in another activity.

I have the taskbar and it shows the windows the same as it does for you so it might not be a bug.

I don't really think it's a bug either, and don't mind the way it works.

But I found this solution might need a better way to show that the window is in another activity.

I think the current way of placing an icon on the taskbar is sufficient to indicate the window is on a different activity. What I don't like is the current way of switching over to the activity the application is running on when that icon is selected. This breaks the "flow" of things by switching activities on me. I think it would be much smoother to, at the very least, have the window transfered over to the current activity, or placed on both activities. I would prefer, however, for it to create a new instance on the current activity - especially in the case of a web browser.

I would prefer, however, for it to create a new instance on the current activity - especially in the case of a web browser.

I agree there, that would be a better solution for that instance.

Or better yet would be that the link is opened in a new window on the current activity. The problem with moving the window to the current activity is that it was on the other activity because the open tabs were associated with the other things relevant to that activity. The new tab isn't associated with those things and so it shouldn't open in the same window.

Now you should be able get that effect by adjusting some settings in the browser to open links in new browser windows rather than new tabs in whatever existing browser. Of course that changes the behavior when the browser is open on the same activity where you would expect the link to open in a new tab in the current activity's browser window. To remedy that the activity-aware browser should have an option that if there is a browser window open on the current activity to open the new tab in that window, otherwise open a new browser window associated with the current activity.

If, on the other hand, you expect the browser to always be treated as activity agnostic then you should mark it as such by associating it with all activities.